I firmly believe that wine is much more than a bottled product – it’s an emotional experience which has been with me since my late teens, and one producer has been with me since my journey began, Yarra Yering. I have personally chosen a selection of wines to share with you, which we have shipped directly from YY cellars. Their wines are different, very different to many of the Australian wines we offer – The precision and balance are extraordinary, particularly after some bottle age.

I hope you try at least one of these great wines.

Cheers,
Stu

Great wine is made in the vineyard

The better the fruit quality and condition, the less winemaking influence is required to deliver premium wine that lasts through the ages. Unirrigated vines produce elegant, complex and powerful wines. Approachable as young wines, they have the ability to develop in the bottle for many years. Yarra Yering is one of Australia’s most iconic wineries with an outstanding international reputation.

The Visionary

Dr Bailey Carrodus was ideally qualified to become a great vigneron. Having completed his degree in horticulture at Victoria University in Wellington New Zealand, he took a second degree, this time in winemaking at Roseworthy Agricultural College in South Australia, where he also taught for some time before moving on to complete his Doctor of Philosophy for research into plant physiology at Queens College, Oxford University in 1965.

A residential college at Queens now carries the name “Carrodus Quad” in his honour.

Legend has it that in early 1960’s Dr Bailey Carrodus and his students in the botany department made many field trips into Victoria’s Yarra Yalley studying its flora, topography and soils. He found his perfect site at the foot of the Warramate Hills and in 1969 began planting. He named his vineyard Yarra Yering and in 1973 produced his first vintage of Dry Red Wine No. 1, a Bordeaux inspired blend and Dry Red Wine No. 2, a northern Rhone blend.

Sadly, the great visionary passed away in 2008, but his legacy continues. The winery was bought by Kaesler wines in the Barossa in 2009; they intend to keep Yarra Yering the way it was, in the spirit of Carrodus. They appointed a brilliant winemaker, Sarah Crowe who had carved a remarkable reputation as a winemaker in the Hunter Valley in a relatively short time and was recently awarded one of the wine industry’s highest honours, Winemaker of the Year for 2017 as named by James Halliday. She continues the tradition that Dr BB Carrodus started in 1969 with the first vineyard plantings at Yarra Yering.

James Halliday / 98 Points

“A blend of cabernet sauvignon (dominant), merlot, malbec and petit verdot. Fabulous colour, deep crimson; the bouquet is so intense it sets the antennae waving furiously. The palate is an essay. Sheer, unadulterated power; the four components have bonded so symbiotically and synergistically with each other, and the 100% new French oak, it will be a decade at the very least before the wine opens up to display the intricacy of its inner workings. When it does, this wine may emerge as the greatest of the vintage.”

“A 70/15/10/5% blend of cabernet sauvignon, merlot, malbec and petit verdot planted in '69, matured for 20 months in 100% new French barriques. Deep crimson-purple, it proclaims its regal birth with the first whiff of the bouquet, the first sip of the palate. Always great, this medium to full-bodied wine pushes past previous vintages with the sheer perfection of its flavour profile, mouthfeel, and, above all else, its balance”

“A cabernet sauvignon-dominant blend, with lesser amounts of merlot, malbec and petit verdot. Excellent hue and depth; this is a top-flight No. 1, fully reflecting the excellent vintage; the flavours are bold and luscious, yet the wine never threatens to lose its shape; first there is the multi-variety complexity, second the perfectly balanced ripe tannins. It almost seems superfluous to mention the new French oak, but it, too, helps weld the wine into its utterly coherent whole”

* SOLD OUT *

James Halliday / 98 Points

“Shiraz, with a small percentage of mataro, was co-fermented with viognier and marsanne. While the colour is not particularly deep, the fragrance of the wine is exceptional, the intensity of the juicy spray of red fruits on the vibrant palate even more so. This is an iron fist in a velvet glove, the flavours lingering long after the wine has been swallowed. The inheritance of the late Bailey Carrodus is being carefully guarded”

“No mlf. A semillon-based white Bordeaux style. While already very complex, toasty and full-bodied, its acidity (left intact by the exclusion of mlf) slices through the palate like King Arthur's sword, and giving the illusion of green lemon and herb/green capsicum flavours. Will be fascinating to watch its development”

"The 2015 Chardonnay opens with lovely peaches, honeysuckle, orange blossom and lemon curd notes with hints of yeast extract and struck match. This Chardonnay has elegant fruitiness on its medium-bodied palate, with wonderfully silky texture, great tension and intensity, finishing with savory layers."

Made from original 1969 plantings and 1980 cuttings from the original vines at Yarra Yering. A highly individual style, reflecting its single vineyard origin A little ginger cream spice and texture from barrel maturation and fermentation add layers, depth and intrigue while the fresh line of acidity drives the palate prolonging the fruit flavour

A mixed planting of 4 clones which was originally undertaken in 1969. The hand-picked fruit was gently destemmed directly to fermenters to retain as many whole berries as possible. A variety of techniques were employed to build perfume and complexity. Some with 20% whole bunches and some with stalks to contribute subtle structure. Aged for 9 months in French oak, 30% new with the balance 1, 2 and 3 year old.